


Trek from Chelsea

by trickybitch



Category: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (TV 2003), Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles - All Media Types
Genre: Blood, uhhhhhh not much else that i can think of atm
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-25
Updated: 2019-05-25
Packaged: 2020-03-17 07:05:31
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,674
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18960310
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/trickybitch/pseuds/trickybitch
Summary: In the wake of a devastating alien invasion with an epicenter in south Chelsea, the last thing Leo expects to be doing is helping one little girl get back home. But here he is, doing just that.





	Trek from Chelsea

**Author's Note:**

> smacks my hands on the table give me leonardo being a mom or give me death
> 
> posted on my tumblr @teetlebros y'all should go check that out

“I’m on my way, don’t worry,” Leo reported into his shell cell. He sucked in a breath and pulled his hat down, covering the side of his face from a group of passers-by. They didn’t pay him a second glance, but he couldn’t be too careful when it came to actually walking on the streets, even if it was dark and raining a bit and the people were far and few in between. “Have you guys all met back up? You’re okay, right?”

He listened intently to the part of Donnie’s report that confirmed that everyone had at least checked in before his attention wavered. With the phone still held up to the side of his head with one hand, the other reached back and grabbed a sword hilt when he heard an odd noise. It sounded like whirring mechanics, which was especially not a good thing when they had just suffered from an invasion of robot aliens.

The attack was heavily concentrated in Chelsea, bordering on the West Village, which was where Leo still was. A lot of buildings had been leveled, and those that were still standing were crumbling. It was devastating, and if you hadn’t been killed in the initial bombings, then you would have fled the area immediately after. It was why Leo was able to walk at street-level: there were barely any people left  _on_ the streets. And of those that were, they weren’t going to be paying attention to him.

Leo kept close to one building that was still standing, narrowing his eyes as the sounds got louder. He unsheathed his sword just slightly before suddenly rounding the edge of the building. He gasped and stumbled back in shock.

One of the massive drones that the invaders had used was sitting in the alleyway, smoking and making all kinds of weird noises. Fires sprouted along its wings—wings that spanned across the entire alley and jutted into the buildings on either side. Debris covered a good portion of them, stacking high.

“Donnie!” Leo called out suddenly, to the extent that it startled the turtle on the other line. “Sorry,” he quickly apologized. “But did you ever figure out if those pod-drones were piloted remotely or not?”

_“No, sorry Leo. I wasn’t able to get close enough. If I had to guess, though, I don’t think they had anyone inside of them. Why?”_

Leo huffed as he took a few steps closer to the drone. If it was piloted by someone (or some _bot_  in this case), they probably wouldn’t have survived such a terrible crash landing. But then again, there were still a few people around, and Leo couldn’t risk it if there was still an alive robot inside of the pod. It could potentially emerge and do even more harm.

“I need to do some recon,” Leo replied. He pulled one sword out and gripped it as he advanced. “I’m putting you on speaker, one second.” Leo did so and slid the shell cell into one of his trench coat pockets before advancing on the pod-drone. He bit his lower lip and reached out to grab at what looked like a door handle before hissing and reeling back.

The metal was scalding. A fire must have broken out right inside.

Why did things always have to be so difficult for him?

Leo looked around before spotting a fire escape that miraculously was still attached to its respective building. He took a few steps back before running and jumping up. He climbed up and braced his foot on the bottom, his free hand holding onto the shoddy rail as he leaned over the pod.

He hummed as he narrowed his eyes, analyzing the extent of the wreckage from above. He really didn’t think that a pilot could have survived something like that, especially since he knew the state of these invaders and how easy they were to take down once their tech wasn’t part of the equation. But then again-

Wait.

What was  _that_?

Leo’s mouth hung open at a brand new sight. On the other side, between the thin gap that remained between the pod and the dead end of the alley, was a a small body. It was huddled up in the corner, and rocking back and forth, and it was a _kid_ and they were still  _alive_?

He was so preoccupied with trying to determine if the kid was hurt from his vantage point that he didn’t notice his foot hold was giving way. Before he knew it, the bottom of the escape collapsed and clanged against the pod.

Leo sucked in a breath and pulled himself back up, perching on the rail. He frowned as the kid pulled tighter into themselves, not even bothering to look up at the noise. And the crying from them was just starting to register.

_“Leo! Leo! I just got my hands on one of the pods. They’re pilotless!”_

Leo reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone. “Thanks for the intel, Don. I have to go.” He hung up before he could listen to anything else Donnie had to say and jumped down, landing lightly a few feet away from the kid—no, the  _girl_. He pulled his trench coat tighter around himself and pulled his hat down in the front. It didn’t do much to disguise his true appearance, but at least he could talk to the kid before upsetting her even more at this point.

“Hey there,” he called out softly, and her head suddenly shot up and she gasped. Her cheeks were bloody, but there were clear lines running down them that indicated tear tracks. “Hi. I’m sorry if I scared you.” She didn’t say anything, only staring at him with big brown eyes. “Is it okay if I come closer to you?”

She heaved out a shaky breath but nodded in response. Leo advanced slowly and squatted down when he was a few inches away from her.

“Y-you’re a turtle,” she stated, before bursting into sobs. Leo gasped and quickly jumped back. He realized that he was still holding one of his swords, and he quickly tossed it to the side.

“I promise, I’m not going to hurt you.” He held up his hands and winced as the wailing kept going strong. “I know I look scary, but I promise. I just want to help you. Please don’t cry.” He didn’t have a lot of experience helping kids. Whenever their missions led them astray and they happened to encounter one, Mikey usually took point with them. What should he even say to her? “I don’t- whoa!”

He nearly fell back onto his carapace when she suddenly lunged at him, locking her arms around his neck. She was… she was  _hugging_  him?

“I didn’t think I was gonna see anyone ever again!” she choked out in between cries. “I thought I was gonna  _die_  here!”

Leo’s eyes widened as his hands reflexively went to brace her back. She latched onto him even tighter, and he took a moment to look around.

Of course. The walls were unscalable on three sides, and the massive pod in front of her was blocking her only way out.

“W-wait.” Her wavering voice, just starting to calm down, regained Leo’s attention. “Y-you’re not gonna… are you gonna leave me?”

“No!” he quickly exclaimed, and he felt something tug at his chest. “No, of course not.”

“ _Good,_ ” she said, and she suddenly pulled away from him, eyes narrowing. “You’re a turtle,” she said yet again.

“I know, I don’t look very-”

“That’s cool.” He blinked as the girl leaned forward and placed her hands on his cheeks, her face scrunched up as if she was analyzing him. “I’ve never met a turtle before.”

 _At least we’ve maintained some secrecy in this city_ , Leo thought.

She leaned forward, her face inches from his now, and he had to fight the urge to immediately back up. “You have really squishy cheeks.” She gave them a pat for good measure before finally backing away from him and standing up. Leo blinked a few times and cleared his throat, but he couldn’t stop the corners of his eyes from crinkling. Not that she could see it through the mask anyways.

Leo shifted into a kneel and tilted his hat back so he could get a better view of the girl. The source of the bleeding was now apparent: a cut on her forehead. He frowned and untied his mask.

“Can I help you?” he asked, and she just cocked her head at him and let out a little laugh. He didn’t get what was so funny. “You’re bleeding, let me…” He inched forward and tied his mask around her head, putting pressure on the cut. He looped the tails back around over the rest of the mask to provide extra padding over the source. “There. Does anything else hurt?”

The girl blinked and put a hand to her makeshift bandage before looking back to the turtle. She put her free hand back on one of his cheeks.

“Your eyes are red.”

He bit his lower lip and tried not to smile. “They are.”

“That’s neat.” Again, she patted him on the cheek before folding her hands before her. “Nothing else hurts, no.”

“That’s good. Now… what was your name?”

“Marie!”

“Okay, Marie, I need to-”

“What’s your name?”

Leo let out an amused hum as he reached back for his sword and tucked it into its sheath. “Leonardo. Now, Marie. Where are your parents?”

Her face suddenly fell and she clasped her hands together tightly. “I… I-I’m not-”

“It’s okay if you don’t know,” Leo said quickly, cutting her off before she could start crying again. “It’s okay if you don’t. Do you?” She shook her head. “Okay, that’s okay.” He tentatively reached out and put a hand on her shoulder. When he saw that it did more good than harm, he kept it there. “Don’t worry. Can you hold on one second?” She looked confused but nodded, only for her eyes to widen as Leo pulled out his phone. She watched with interest as he got to his feet and started talking.

“Donnie, what are the chances that the phone lines are working?”

_“Leo! Are you okay, you cut out-”_

“I’m fine Don, I just need to know.”

_“Well, long story short, they aren’t. We’re only still talking because we’re on our own service.”_

“And it would have to be on both ends to call,” Leo mumbled, more to himself.

_“Yup! Why do you ask?”_

“… I found this girl.” He looked down at Marie, who had taken interest in his coattails. She tugged at them. “She’s about 6… maybe 7 or 8, I don’t know how they work. She got hurt and separated from her parents. I’m assuming that at least one of them returned home just in case she were to call or somehow show back up. I don’t- Don, did I just hear  _blaster fire_?”

_“Oh, yeah! There’s a whole cell of the robots in Times.”_

“Donatello!”

 _“Oh, it’s fine! Their weapons are all busted. They’re basically harmless, but there are a_  lot _of them and they are_ very  _persistent!”_

“Do you need me there?!”

_“No, we’re all good! It’s just tedious. And a bit annoying. I’d offer to come pick you up, but I think we’re only able to hold them off like this because we’re at the minimum number to make this work. We’ll be okay! Just help the kid, and- oh, Raph is yelling at me, gottagobyegoodluck!”_

Leo huffed and stared down at his phone before shoving it into his pocket.

“Who was that?” Marie asked, staring up at him.

“My brother. My idiot brother.” Leo mumbled that second part under his breath. He knelt back down and gathered the bottom of his coat in his hands. He waved her over and she obliged. “Marie, calling your parents doesn’t seem to be an option,” he said softly, using his coat to wipe the blood from her cheeks. He didn’t even realize he was doing it; it was instinct at this point, with all the times his own brothers had gotten themselves bloody, or even just dirty. “Neither is staying here. I don’t think that anyone could find you. There’s too much wreckage blocking too many streets.” He looked back into her eyes and noticed that they were starting to fill up with more tears. “No! No, it’s okay!”

“So my parents aren’t gonna find me?” she whimpered.

“No! I mean- listen, don’t worry. They won’t need to.” He took a deep breath and tried to give her the most reassuring look he could as he straightened back up. “I’m going to bring you home… you know what your address is, right?”

“ _Yes_!” She seemed incredibly indignant with her response. “But Mom and Dad say that I shouldn’t give it to strangers.”

“That’s understandable. But look, Marie, I-”

“But I trust you,” she decided. “You’re my friend at this point. Right, Leonardo?”

He smiled down at her, tiredly yet genuinely. “Right.”

“I live on east 96th.”

His heart nearly stopped. The Upper East Side, and E 96 was basically… it was basically  _Harlem_!

“I see.” He did his best to hide his shock. He contemplated the situation for a moment, not even registering as the rain started coming down much heavier. Should he drop her off at a police station nearby? They could get her home quicker, but that was assuming there weren’t more cells of robots still around. And the damaged streets were already a given, not even a hypothetical. That would only make it more dangerous to travel by car.

 _He_  had to bring her back.

“Marie, I- are you okay?”

He looked back down at her, an eye ridge raised when he saw that she had started shaking.

“Mhmm. Just… it’s cold.”

Leo blinked slowly. It was almost pouring. He looked back down at the tiny girl, her arms wrapped around herself. He pulled off his straps and set them down for a moment before sliding his coat off and offering her a hand.

“Come here.” She took his hand, confused for a moment, before he turned her around and slid her arms through the sleeves. It was massive on her.

“Don’t you need it? Turtles are cold-blooded. I learned that in school. Also, I don’t think I can walk in this.

Leo chuckled and shook his head. “I’ll be okay. And you won’t be walking.” He slid his straps back on and made sure his swords were secured before picking Marie up and setting her down on his back. She gasped and excitedly patted his shoulders.

“A piggyback ride!”

“Yes, and a long one at that. Hold on tightly, okay?”

“I know how piggybacks work,” she replied, but tightened her grip nevertheless.

“Not this one, Marie. Are you holding- okay, good. Now, don’t get scared.”

“Why would I get-?” She suddenly shrieked, her grip tightening exponentially as Leo ran forwards, jumped up and grabbed onto the fire escape rail, and swung over to the other side of the pod. “Wow! That was cool!”

“I’m glad you thought so. Now, can you loosen just a- yes, that’s good, thanks. I’ll let you know if you have to tighten again.” Leo’s hands went down and supported her thighs as he peaked out of the alley. The street was abandoned. He took a deep breath and emerged.

“I live far,” Marie suddenly noted. Her arms hung loosely around Leo’s neck, and her voice took on a tone of sadness. “Are you gonna be okay? Taking me?”

Leo craned his neck to the side, and she reeled back a bit to look at him. Her expression was apprehensive and just… so  _scared_.

“I’m going to be just fine,” he assured her. He hefted her up further onto his carapace and offered a smile, one that said he wasn’t going to be leaving her anytime soon. “Let’s get you home.”


End file.
